社交 林鈺堂

應酬私情任牽繫,那來篤誠養一心?
維護佛門賴交際,豈能安穩度八風?
社交不捨妄無歇,長年寂寥漸趨真。
突破自我牢籠後,廣結六道解脫緣。

個人修行要能切實,必需放得下社交的心思,並且謝絕應酬性的往來。這樣才可能有長遠的沉寂與磨鍊。佛門的維繫當完全在於弘揚法義與實際行持上,而不是靠交際與熱鬧的聚會。否則只是另類的世間團體或行業,不但不能助人解脫,反而增加了糾纏的因緣。等到超越私心之後,才能廣結六道的解脫緣。吾人學佛應知取捨,忍小以就大。


                     二○○一年七月三十日
                     養和齋    於加州


Social Activities Yutang Lin

Allowing emotional ties to pull hither and thither,
Where is the earnestness to cultivate non-duality?
Maintaining sects by engaging in social functions,
How could that withstand the worldly influences?
Without discarding social activities delusion lasts;
Long years of solitude gradually approach purity.
Having escaped the multilevel cage of one self,
Reach all beings equally through serving Dharma.

Comment:

To be solid in one practice it is necessary to give up thoughts related to socializing with others. In addition, a practitioner needs to decline all social visits and activities. Only in this way could there be long-term solitude and training on spiritual path. The maintenance of a Buddhist school should base on its propagation of Buddhist teachings and solid Dharma practices, but not on sociable and festive gatherings. Otherwise, it would be just a special kind of worldly organization or even trade; not only could it not help people attain liberation but also would it increase conditions for further entanglement. Only after one has transcended self-interests could one provide conditions toward liberation for beings in the six realms of transmigration. Buddhists in the pursuit of enlightenment should know well what to choose, and be patient in discarding the minor matters in order to attain the supreme goal.


Written in Chinese on July 30, 2001
Translated on August 8, 2001
El Cerrito, California


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